Tuesday, March 18, 2014

1. Please tell me the three most important things people should know about you.I'm an incurable optimist, love Golden Age mysteries, and support the hopeless Cubbies.

2. Are you a dog person or a cat person?Cats, those mysterious beings who secretly rule the world!

3. Tea or coffee?Coffee please, no milk or sugar.

4. Boxers, briefs, boxer-briefs, or commando? (Either what you prefer or what you prefer on others.)Ahem. I'll take the Fifth on that one!

5. What was the first thing you ever wrote?In fiction, a romantic novel. I'm happy to say the only copy of the ms was lost during a move years ago.

6. When did you finally decide to call yourself a writer?I rarely describe myself thus. While I am not comfortable tooting my own trombone, I will say we -- that is to say my co-author Eric Mayer and I -- have learned a lot more about the craft than we knew when we ignorantly set out to take the mystery world by storm!

7. Which of your works are you most proud to have written.Today I would say Five For Silver, set during the Justinianiac plague, but tomorrow it would be a different title, given the task is like trying to choose the child of which you are most proud. If favourite characters such as a sundial manufacturer afraid of shadows, a diminutive Egyptian musician, the interpreter of a herd of prophetic goats, a seller of dubious antiquities, an itinerant bee keeper, a maker of automatons, a holy fool who dances with the dead, a creator of dear little cat mummies, a bookseller who rents space to unusual clients, the street prostitute with a three-legged cat, to name but a few, were all in the same novel it would be a much easier question to answer!

8. What is the scariest thing that has ever happened to you?Going through the immigration process.

9. How did you end up getting published?The short stories? Initially by following the usual route of unsolicited submission and then later a number were commissioned for anthologies. But our series saw print in a rather unusual way and luck played a part in it. We read that Poisoned Pen Press, then in its infancy, was up for a non-fiction award, wrote to congratulate them, and asked if they would be considering fiction. An encouraging reply arrived and One For Sorrow was accepted in due course, becoming the first mystery the press published.

We learned after its acceptance that editor Barbara Peters had just been commenting on the lack of a mystery series set in Byzantine times, during which our series is set, not long before our enquiry arrived.

10. Would you be food or fighter if the zombie apocalypse were to happen?Probably food. Though I would attempt to flee to the furthermost hills were zombies to shamble down the turnpike.

11. What is the most daring thing you have ever done?Becoming a second wife.

12. Would you rather be rich or famous--and you could only have one--and why? The fame would be based on something good, not something like being the best serial killer or anything like that.If forced to choose, I'd say rich because I have no desire to be famous personally. Though our work becoming famous is a very attractive notion.

Blurb for Ten For Dying.

On a hot summer night in 6th century Constantinople a blasphemous ritual is under way as demons vanish into the darkness with one of the city’s holiest relics, a fragment of the shroud of the Virgin. As if Felix, Captain of the Palace Guard, didn’t have enough problems already between his gambling debts, political maneuverings, and an ambitious new mistress, Emperor Justinian orders him to find the missing relic. If only John were still in the city and could assist Felix. Unfortunately, the former Lord Chamberlain was sent into exile, sailing away the morning after the theft...

Mary Reed and Eric Mayer are married and co-write the Lord Chamberlain historical mysteries and other fiction. They invite you to visit their home page, hanging out on the virtual washing line that is the internet at http://home.earthlink.net/~maywrite for information about their short stories and novels, libraries of links to free e-texts of classic and Golden Age mysteries, ghost stories, and tales of the supernatural, reviews, essays, and other content not about them!

6 comments:

I really enjoyed reading this interview and getting to "meet" Mary. Her answers gave me a few big smiles, such as the scariest thing she's ever done. I admire those who are able to write with a partner. That must be a gift because I have to be completely alone. Good job, Ladies!

"First, our thanks to Holli for hosting us. Mean to say, you never know what someone will answer these sorts of intriguing questions!

Jackie and Lorna, appreciate you taking time to comment. Writing with a partner works well if you recall there is no room for ego -- and as Eric has said before make sure the doors have strong hinges..."

About Me

My first novel was published in 2009, but my writing career almost ended before it began when I was in a near-fatal head-on collision with a drunk driver just as Gumbo Justice was scheduled for release.

After seven months of surgeries to have titanium rods, plates and screws in my legs and arm, I always say I'm still kicking, just not as high.

Order Gumbo Justice at Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble online

About My Novels

My novels, Gumbo Justice, Jambalaya Justice, and Chocolate City Justice due out by year's end, are part of the Crescent City Mystery Series, published by Oak Tree Press.

The series features a female prosecutor in New Orleans, drawn in part from my own experience as a New Orleans assistant district attorney.

The protagonist, Ryan Murphy, likes her Tequila cold and her cops hot, and has a penchant for finding trouble. If she can just remember that justice and the law are not always the same thing, she just might win her cases, solve the mystery, and end up alive. But that's a big IF.